Client Cancellation? Prepping for Disaster Avoidance
September 17, 2009 by Mary Ellen
What happens when you lose your biggest client?
A service provider I know rolled her eyes. “I’m already there,” she sighed. “Got the word yesterday…my biggest client has a cash flow problem and is taking a hiatus.”
Other group members responded:
“I’m worried about next quarter. It’s soft.”
“I don’t like to think about those things. I’ve worked with the same clients for years.”
“If I don’t add some business soon, I’ll have to lay somebody off.”
“My biggest client was just bought out. At the moment, it doesn’t appear anything will change.”
“There’s plenty of other gloomy things to consider. Don’t make trouble.” (Sarcastic NOTE: There’s a proactive stance. Stick your head in the sand and don’t worry. If you don’t think of it, “It” doesn’t exist.)
In any economy, business comes and goes. Clients change their plans, their minds and their habits. In tough times, anticipating these changes means the difference between survival and failure.
Smart day-to-day operations include practices for maintaining current business as well as soliciting new business. Here are a few ideas:
- Practice Pareto’s Principle: 80/20. Quick. Do you know the 20% of your customers who comprise 80% of your business? Focus efforts on the top 20% without completely neglecting other opportunities.
- Name your top customers. If you’re a service provider with a short list of clients, think about employees at your big clients. Can you address them by name? Retailers, do you know your biggest regular customers? Restaurateurs, do you address your regulars by name? Personalizing business makes a difference. Sometimes, people stay with you because they believe you care.
- Know the state of your clients’ business. Become familiar with business seasonality, industry trends, and competitive nuances of each client’s business. Know big selling items, high profit ones, etc. See reason number two. Demonstrate you care.
- Check in. When was the last time you gave a call to simply check in with a customer? That’s right. A no-sell, no-reason call.
- Develop an ongoing thank you system. Your thank you could be as simple as a handwritten note, or, it might be a new idea, an extra-value placement, or some other reminder of your company’s worth.
- Publicize your efforts. Sure, you use your Facebook status, Twitter updates and your monthly newsletter. Is that enough? Do you need another marketing channel? Have you looked at a case study or considered approaching a local publication about a client success story? The beauty of this kind of publicity is that it works for you and for your client at the same time.
- Identify a list of 10 to 15 prospects and do something each day to reach out to them. One advertising agency keeps a 10-postcard-mailer system in play. Over 10 days, 10 weeks or 10 months they mail to decision makers. For example, after meeting a contact at a chamber event, the agency systematically sends brightly colored messages; once the halfway point is reached, they call for an exploratory appointment. Key to the success of this prospecting system is systematic follow through and a definitive number of prospects.
- Market on! Ongoing marketing is the key to avoiding disaster. Prepare now for the possibility of client loss. Who knows? You might find yourself with an increase in business instead of a loss.
By now, you’ve probably got your own juices flowing. Go ahead. Tell us what works for you. What are you doing to ward against losing your biggest client?
Comments
Feel free to leave a comment...
and oh, if you want a pic to show with your comment, go get a gravatar!
Search
Recent Posts
Categories
Useful Links
Archives